6.20.2014

Seeing beauty or boring

I had a long drive across Pennsylvania yesterday. It gave me a lot of time to think about this accusation I often hear when introducing myself as being from Nebraska. It goes something like this:

"Nebraska. I drove across that once. Thought it would never end. Wow, it was boring."

Generally, my rejoinder has been something along the likes of the interstate cutting through the most boring part, the beauty of the Sandhills or canyons just to the north or south, the rolling hills of prairie, etc. etc.

But yesterday, as I drove across PA, I thought to myself, "Well, if you've seen one 5 mile stretch of trees and valleys and hills, you've seen em all! But guess what? You get 200 more miles of the same thing!"

It's not that either one or the other of these landscapes is inherently beautiful or boring. They're both, depending on your mindset and perspective and home environment, I'm guessing. I really missed being able to watch the sun set. Interstates are pretty damn boring, no matter where you are -- with a few rare exceptions like in Colorado.

Bottom line, though, I do pity people who can't see beauty in vastness. I present my evidence from my Kansas-Nebraska century last weekend. Take it or leave it.



5.22.2014

Royal 162

There's this thing with gravel events. You send in a postcard months in advance. It's usually deep in the winter. You're dreaming of summer. You're eager to put training plans into place to meet this year's goal. And then, life happens...as do long-winded race write-ups...

This year, rather than making a third year in a row of the very fine, wonderfully challenging Almanzo 100, I instead opted for its more ambitious companion, the Royal 162. (No, I didn't go for the 380+ mile Alexander, as much as the fellas tried to get me to change my mind the night before...) It would serve as my May Hundy-of-the-Month Club ride -- 14 months in a row -- and with a course as beautiful as the Almanzo, I was up for taking on a few more hours of scenery and a little less dust and ditch-to-ditch bike traffic at the start.

And then there was the whole thing where I took 12 credit hours, finished and defended my Masters thesis, and fell in love with someone very far away. I trained some, but not as much as last winter. My winter/spring looked more like "ride hundy/do virtually nothing but sit in front of computer or book for three weeks/panic/ride a little/fly cross country/more work/ride hundy." I knew I had miles in my legs and that after last summer, my body knew what to do, but I was a little out of practice. I graduated a week before the race. I spent the early part of the week in a real funk, contemplating cross-country moves and the vast unknown that is my professional future. My head was not in the game for a long, difficult day of riding.

I headed up Thursday with Corey, who was going to be taking on the nearly 400-mile Alexander. Chatting with Almanzo's organizer Chris Skogen at their check-in, I was absolutely switched into "happy to be there" mode. Then having dinner with the Alexander crew that night, 162 miles suddenly seemed incredibly reasonable.
Gasland. I need to watch the whole thing. Impressed by the director's dedication to his work.

Ostrander lunch

Riding with Kurt and Mike

Friday, I enjoyed a mellow start to the day after Corey's early departure. Finally watched (most of) the documentary Gasland, which was on TV, and remembered why I love the medium of documentary. Met up with Mike and Kurt from Chicago, who took me on a lunch ride to a bar in Ostrander, where I ate a bunch of fried cheese curds. Noted the amazing lack of school-related stress. Napped. Joined the rest of the Lincoln crew at the check-in. Ate more pizza. Hugged far away buddies at the campground. Packed up the bike with lots of food and room for the clothes to be shed between the mid-30s at the start to the low 60s it was to be in the afternoon. Slept, restlessly.

Dustin and I met up with Matt and Butch at 6:30 to roll down to Main Street for the 7 AM start, and it was so chill and sparse in comparison to the Almanzo start. I liked it, but I also missed the overwhelming "I AM PART OF SOMETHING" feeling that being there with over 1,000 other riders gives. I'd venture about 60-70 riders started the Royal, and about 7 or 8 women, by my count. It was chilly but beautiful as Andrea Cohen and I rolled out of town. It's always so good to see that lady!
Coffee and a cinnamon roll on Main St. before the start

Hamming it up with Andrea

Love the name of this road.

Gorgeous morning to be riding with friends.

It was much easier not to get caught up in the excitement with fewer riders and more distance to cover. Goodbye, lead pack; hello, chit chatting. I noticed lots of beautiful buildings I'd overlooked in past years. I settled into my pace, leapfrogging with several riders for the first 25 miles. By about mile 30, Dustin and I found ourselves at a very nicely matched and comfortable pace. I had regretted not hopping in with Loretta and Andrea after taking a bit longer break at one point, but we had a good pace going. I was hoping to finish in the twilight, but I had lights with me...

We got to Preston, and Matt and Butch were no longer in sight. We pulled into town, filled up water and donuts at the grocery store, put on sunscreen and shed some layers. My bags were stuffed to the brim, between my frame bag and my little handlebar burrito. While there was another town stop 63 miles in at Harmony, there would be no food to be had from there to the finish, nearly 100 miles later. Oy.

We rolled out of Preston as a group of two, Dustin and I, and we didn't see any other riders for quite some time. Then, shortly after departing from the Almanzo course and onto the Royal add-on, we missed a turn on the cues and found ourselves, one mile further, at an intersection we were supposed to be at something like 7 miles later. How frustrating is that? We saw a couple cyclists come at us from the left, one blow past from the direction we'd come from and just go on through, and then another, Mary from Minneapolis, stop to see what we were up to. Confirmed: we were just outside of Harmony, and we needed to go back a mile, turn, and do a nice, long loop to bring us back to this intersection. Honor code engage. Back we went, seeing the sign we missed in the trees. It was a pretty loop, but it felt so excruciating to ride these miles out of the way of our goal. It was warm and it was lunch time. But so it goes. We got them ridden.

When we got to Harmony, we headed for the main street, where we found a bar offering "Drunch" -- get your drink and brunch on. YOU GOT IT. There were a few other riders there already, and not too long after we got there, Jason & Aaron from Lincoln joined us, too. We all ordered beers and big plates of breakfast food. Don't think I've ever eaten eggs and hashbrowns and toast so fast. This was going to be a long stop -- the one that prevented my daylight finish -- but it was worth it.
Drunch menu

After Harmony, Dustin and I connected with Luigi and Steven, who were both riding fixed gear All-City Big Blocks with huge gearing and had driven through the night from NYC to get to the race. They were fun to ride and chat with, and the pace was probably a bit too high for right after a big lunch. After 7 or 8 miles, we saw two familiar figures on the crest of the next hill -- Matt and Butch! They'd opted to skip a stop in Harmony for some snacks on the side of the road, and so now we had a little group of six to head into what felt like a really long stretch of headwind.

Our group strung out into solo suffer efforts. We were just a bit under 100 miles in. The wind was definitely stronger than forecasted, trade-off for the slightly less cold morning, perhaps. When we finally turned north, we took a break from the wind in the ditch. The psychological benefit of knowing we were at the far point and heading back toward Spring Valley was palpable. Butch, however, was feeling pretty ragged from the course. He had me look at the map to see how far it was if he headed directly back. He didn't make a decision at that point, and as we left the ditch, I thought he and Matt were following right behind. A few miles later, though, and we didn't see them again the rest of the race. It was sad to part ways, but the one thing you can count on riding with Matt is that if you want to keep going but are struggling to know why, he'll keep you going. I sincerely hoped I wouldn't be needing that skill set later...
Ditch stop. Not feeling so awesome.

I think this hawk was sent for me from afar to remind me to keep going.

The next stretch of road was absolutely beautiful and peaceful. We were in Amish country, and we'd pass by fields being plowed by teams of four horses. The farmers and their children always smiled and waved, even from far off in the field. After all, their horses and plows were quiet enough to hear our bikes coming down the gravel. The sides of the roads were dotted with signs reading "Do Not Spray, Organic Farm," and I thought a whole lot about how good it is that these farming communities lasted long enough through the industrial agriculture revolution to make it to today, when their sustainable practices are valued once again. It was such a stark contrast to scenes from earlier, getting dusted by huge farming equipment that nearly took up the whole road, or to later in the evening, as the sun set and the giant tractors with bright headlights were still out in the fields, roaring away. As we passed through a small Amish settlement that was home to what appeared to be an Adirondack chair factory, a family out for a walk asked where we were from. "Nebraska!" I said. "Wow, really?!" answered the father, smiling broadly. It was a beautiful moment.
Amish Country

Dustin is an awesome riding buddy.

Amish mowing. Chain the horse in the ditch, relocate periodically once grass is eaten down in that area.
Adirondack chair central. Looked like a pleasant place to work.

Not long after that, we rejoined the Almanzo course. The prospect of catching up to some riders from the 100 was welcome, as Dustin and I hadn't seen many people of late. The thing I realized, though, was that while in perspective, that last 50 would be the home stretch, my memories of doing the 100 had me recalling that those were some damn tough miles. And only half of that course. Yeesh. We had some strong winds again, and the hills were rolling. What was remarkable, though, was seeing how the 1,000+ bikes that had traversed this road ahead of us had made a distinct track in the gravel, one ribbon of smooth line reaching far into the distance. We passed a couple packs of Almanzo riders, including three of my friend Anna's Koochella teammates. I admired their tenacity, plugging away at the miles. We had more headwind sections, and Dustin and I finally decided maybe we ought to do a little pull rotation. This got us through a chunk of miles, tick tick tick on the cue sheet.

The miles to Forestville dragged on. Finally, we were there, refilling bottles, eating, and trying to keep our eyes open. I tried lying down on a picnic table and nearly threw up. I sat next to a tree and thought I'd fall asleep. The early evening light was beautiful, and I thought about the fact that you should never, ever set up camp there, or you'd never leave. And as we got rolling, we pulled past Mary, who was doing just that. I looked at her with a deep sense of envy, but Dustin pulled on up the hill, reminding me we had 38 miles to go. And we were going to do it. From here, the river crossing would be halfway to the finish. 
Forestville emotions.

Coming out of Forestville, the climbs were really getting to me. I was tired, and not staying on top of my nutrition. It was looking stormy, and I was not excited about getting rained on. At the top of one climb, though, there was a beautiful rainbow. And then there was Dustin, waiting at the top of a hill with a magically delicious rice cake filled with blackberries and covered in mint leaves. HEAVEN. We were stopped alongside a beautiful farmhouse, and the woman who lived there was walking out to get her mail. She asked if we had a map or something that told us what to do, and I showed her the cue sheets. She offered water, and though we weren't out, we filled up. "It's by the horse corral," she said, "but it's nice, pure water." She was not kidding. It was the most deliciously sweet water I'd ever had. Her husband was making a fire in their firepit, and again, it would've been lovely to stop and watch the sunset with them...

We passed through the town of Cherry Grove, where the Banjo Brothers shenanigans were long gone. We got to the creek crossing, descending into the beautiful valley. As we reached the river, there were two Almanzo riders on the other side, putting their shoes back on and encouraging us. Dustin gave it a go, and I opted to walk. Skinny tires and tired self...and I wanted dry shoes. The water was cold and the rocks were sharp, and I nearly lost my balance a couple times. That would not have been fun.
The World Menacing Dame inspects the Root River crossing.

Nah, we're gonna walk. White feet, gray shins, tan quads.

The climb out of the creek crossing is really the only MMR section of the course, and I love it. Rocky double track...give me miles and miles of it. Ok, maybe not all at once at the end. But it was awesome, as was knowing we had just 20 miles to go. We sent a message to Adam and Joy that we were 20 miles out and anticipating finishing somewhere between 9:30 and 10 and if they could please get beer. We were treated to a gorgeous sunset. And then, as we descended to the base of Oriole Road, I had a scary, scary moment of losing control of my front wheel at 30+mph. I relived my crash from 3 weeks earlier in my head in a split second, screaming "NO NO NO!" Thankfully, I saved it. But, damn.

Gorgeous magic hour light.
Sunset over the Driftless hills

We stopped to put on our lights at the bottom of the hill. It was twilight. And that hill. Ugh. Dustin rode it like a champ, and I met him at the top on foot. 9 miles to go. One more scary descent and climb. Then, lights of Spring Valley blinking in the distance. One more rice cake. Lots of stops to double check the cue sheets in the dark. Just a few more turns. Pavement. Bike path. And then, the finish, to cheers and cowbells, even late in the dark. We'd made it before 10 PM, about an hour past my goal, but happy and in one piece. Besides, as Dustin said, it's important to set ambitious goals -- ones you can only meet about 50% of the time. After shaking hands with Chris and trying to get him up to speed on other riders that might still be on course, we rolled back to the hotel, to be greeted by a sink full of cold beer and a jacuzzi full of hot water. Well done, Joy & Adam! Oh, and they killed it in the Almanzo, finishing in 8.5 hours, first gravel century for Adam and first century of any sort for Joy. Amazing.
Finishers!!

Jacuzzi felt amazing.

Ok, I almost passed out after sitting in that jacuzzi and then standing up. But it was amazing. And better yet, a couple hours later, we got word that not only had Corey finished the Alexander, but that Matt and Butch had pulled in to finish the Royal at about the same time. That meant a 100% finish rate for Nebraskans, from the 7 of us in the Royal, the 7 in the Almanzo (that I know of), and the 1 in the Alexander. Not too shabby, folks.
Eating Punjabi curry out of a can with the end of my toothbrush. Another type of "run whatcha brung," in absence of silverware.

There were a lot of things I missed about the huge crowds that the Almanzo provides. And the extended party hours in the evening. But especially because of that long section through Amish country, the Royal was a nice change, too. The ride was beautiful. The company was great. The bike was flawless. The community that does all this is unmatched. I'm happy to be a part of it all. A couple days later, seeing Morrissey throw a diva fit on stage and sing decades of morose songs, I wondered at how someone could be so singularly mad at the world. Sure, there are plenty of things to be angry about and to take action to make better. But to be so unable to see beauty in the world just made me sad for him. Maybe he just needs a long bike ride. Thanks for reading, and remember to smile and appreciate what's all around us. 


5.14.2014

My Year 2013

In past years, I've waited to debut "My Year" until the Home Grown Film Festival, but this year, I wanted to share it as soon as it was completed. 2013 was a year of personal growth, strong friendships, new friendships, adventure, travel, and lots of bike rides. In some cases, it was simple to find the perfect second to capture a day. In others, it was incredibly hard to choose just one second, especially on long days filled with many memorable moments.

As I transition out of graduate school (at least for now) and into my next stage, I'm finding myself drawn to rekindling my focus on video production and video art. This has been a five year project at this point. That is a whole lot of autoethnography, and I'm interested in where it might go. I've often reflected on its repetition, its occasional chore-like nature, and its tendency to take a backseat as things like Instagram have entered my life.

But, I can't stop. Every time I think about quitting, I meet someone who looks forward to the videos. I wonder in awe how they could mean something to someone else. What fusion of art and voyeurism have I created? What makes this take on documentary engaging to strangers and friends? How does this work as something beyond self-indulgence?

To be sure, the process of transitioning 52 My Weeks into 365 discreet seconds is a completely different challenge. I thank you for sharing in it with me. I especially thank those of you who appear in the series for sharing time with me and subjecting yourselves to documentation. 

Enough words. Watch, enjoy, comment, pushback, or go make your own.


One second per day, each day of the year. A year of personal growth, strong friendships, exciting travel, and lots of bike rides.

4.29.2014

Exploring

9 Flats Road

Must've had thorns somewhere

Sweet dirt

Miles and miles of dirt

Abandoned house near Dorchester

North face. Note the lack of windows.

Back (West) side, with the bridge in the background.
This was a couple weeks ago, a much-needed break in the final push to finish my thesis.

4.01.2014

What is citizenship?

As the deadline to file taxes approaches, think for a minute about what it means for some of your neighbors. One view from Lincoln
When these model non-citizens are responsibly filing their taxes in a country that continues to refuse to recognize them (unless we need their $), what's the point? You may ask why they are filing at all. It's to be in good standing while hoping for a reform that would possibly provide them a pathway to citizenship, allowing them the benefits they are denied now based on a technicality. I say technicality (legal status) because they are as citizen-like as any of us. They own a home, their kids go to my neighborhood schools (for which they pay property tax), they live down the block from me, Lucia works at a restaurant I frequent, they bought a new car last year. You know: America, right?
My friend Aaron volunteers as an interpreter and tax filing assistant. I am proud to call him a friend. Thank you, Aaron, for what you do for our community. And thank you for speaking for many of us who agree with you, sharing your gratitude with Lucia and Esteban.  

3.14.2014

3.12.2014

Effecting Change: Why did USAC Restrict One-Day License Availability?

Problem: The governing body for bike racing in the US made a rule change that negatively impacts occasional amateur racers.

Details:

In order to participate in many cycling events, riders must purchase a license through USAC. In the past, riders of all but the elite levels could choose to purchase either a one-day license ($10) or an annual license ($60, or $90 if participating in both road and mountain disciplines. Either worked for cyclocross). In 2014, USAC changed the rules as follows:
  • One-day licenses are now $15. 
  • One-day licenses are not available for anything but the beginner category.
  • If you have EVER possessed an annual license, you cannot purchase a one-day license. 
  • An annual license now covers all disciplines, and costs $70. 
Why this is problematic:

Let's say I decide to have a baby. After giving birth, I probably won't want to race a full calendar of races, not nearly enough to justify a $70 license to do a race or two. But I can imagine it would feel really good to get back out there for my favorite race of the season. However, because I have held an annual license for the last 4 years, I would be ineligible to participate.

I can think of many examples, but I'll leave it at one. I'd like to hear what others think, too.
 
Context: I'm studying civic engagement, democratic participation, and effecting change in the face of decisions made that negatively impact the less powerful.

Action: This is where I need help. I've seen some pushback on Twitter and a few blogs, but that's not effecting change...yet. How can we work together to point out the negative consequences and hopefully find a solution/policy change?

If you are upset about this change, let's work together instead of complaining in isolation, let action win over cynicism.
USA Cycling has changed the rules regarding ONE-DAY (Beginner) licenses ONE-DAY USA Cycling licenses are $15. ONE-DAY USA Cycling licenses are no longer available for any riders racing as a men's 4,3,2,1, or Pro or for women 3,2,1, or Pro. ONE-DAY licenses are also no longer available for anyone who has ever possessed a USAC license. - See more at: http://303cycling.com/node/6213#sthash.aTwxyfP6.dpuf
USA Cycling has changed the rules regarding ONE-DAY (Beginner) licenses ONE-DAY USA Cycling licenses are $15. ONE-DAY USA Cycling licenses are no longer available for any riders racing as a men's 4,3,2,1, or Pro or for women 3,2,1, or Pro. ONE-DAY licenses are also no longer available for anyone who has ever possessed a USAC license. - See more at: http://303cycling.com/node/6213#sthash.aTwxyfP6.dpuf
USA Cycling has changed the rules regarding ONE-DAY (Beginner) licenses ONE-DAY USA Cycling licenses are $15. ONE-DAY USA Cycling licenses are no longer available for any riders racing as a men's 4,3,2,1, or Pro or for women 3,2,1, or Pro. ONE-DAY licenses are also no longer available for anyone who has ever possessed a USAC license. - See more at: http://303cycling.com/node/6213#sthash.aTwxyfP6.dpuf
USA Cycling has changed the rules regarding ONE-DAY (Beginner) licenses ONE-DAY USA Cycling licenses are $15. ONE-DAY USA Cycling licenses are no longer available for any riders racing as a men's 4,3,2,1, or Pro or for women 3,2,1, or Pro. ONE-DAY licenses are also no longer available for anyone who has ever possessed a USAC license. - See more at: http://303cycling.com/node/6213#sthash.aTwxyfP6.dpuf

2.15.2014

It's not about self-esteem

From Gloria Ladson-Billings, 2006:

"Our supreme reliance on individuals means that we look at students as individually responsible for their success in school. We lack complex understandings of how individual, family, community, school, and societal factors interact to create school failure for some students. It is much easier to explain students' failure by looking at something internal to the students than endemic in this thing we call school culture. Self-esteem is liberally sprinkled throughout American English. Every talk show host, every talk show guest has uttered the word. 'I overate because I had low self-esteem.' 'I allowed my partner to abuse me because I had low self-esteem.' I eagerly await the day when someone says, 'I overeat because I am surrounded by food ads and fast-food outlets that sell nothing but high-fat, unhealthy food, and as a poor person it is more difficult to buy fresh fruits and vegetables and take time to prepare them.' Or, 'I was abused by my partner because he's a jerk who has decided to work through his own shortcomings by taking advantage of me. The society says he should make a certain amount of money to take care of his family. He doesn't make it and I am a constant reminder of his failure but I'm an okay person.'"

Preach on. Say why problems really exist. Think about why it's not your fault. Or why it is.

From: 
Ladson-Billings, G. (2006). It’s not the culture of poverty, it’s the poverty of culture: The problem with teacher education. Anthropology & Education Quarterly, 37(2), 104–109.

2.14.2014

Milking Bees

Learn something new today!



From my amazing friend and former Bien Rican, Kat!

2.12.2014

Burning Questions

I'm in a seminar on democratic education this term. It deals with 1. What is education, done democratically? and 2. What is education in a democratic society?, among many, many other questions.

Monday night's class tasked us each with writing for 5 or so minutes our answers to the following questions:

Where does your orientation to justice come from?
and
Where does your citizen consciousness come from?

The responses were interesting. But I'm not going to tell you about them until you do this yourself. Really think about it. Write it down. What influenced you? Where did you learn about justice, and what does it mean to you now? What does it mean to you to be a citizen, a part of civil society, and why do you feel that way?

1.27.2014

Math

It's fascinating stuff. As a young student, I always did well. Advanced, in fact. Yet, at some point, it became clear to me that I wasn't really "good at math" so much as I was "excellent at memorization." I was also able to perform half-hour long monologues, after all. Well, Wednesday, I have to suffer through the GRE. I've decided, as somewhat of a principled stance, that beyond one short practice, I am not studying for it. It makes little sense. One thing that revealed itself in the practice exam, though, is that my college-prep curriculum (coupled with Brown's open curriculum) never taught me statistics, the one field of mathematics that would actually be quite useful for me.



Really, though, I wish I'd have had more tangible problems to solve in the math classroom, and more examples like the Eames film above (h/t to Malcolm T, currently teaching 8th grade math in Denver, for sharing).

1.26.2014

File Under Short stories told through film

I hope these guys continue to bring the rad.

video platformvideo managementvideo solutionsvideo player

http://thechive.com/2013/06/17/allow-me-to-present-easily-the-two-coolest-kids-of-this-week-video/

1.24.2014

Califone and Poetry

I'm excited to see Califone live for the first time tonight. And I was reminded of the film made by poet-friend Joshua Marie Wilkinson about them.

I'm posting here a little more these days. Growing a bit weary of Facebook and Twitter...

1.21.2014

On Happiness



Last night, I saw Is the Man Who Is Tall Happy? You have two more days to see it if you're in Lincoln. And it is well worth your while.

Rather than a full review, I wanted to make just one observation. Gondry opens the film with the statement that "film and video are both by their nature manipulative," a premise I've held to both true and quite problematic for me as a filmmaker -- and particularly as a documentarian. He goes on to discuss the ways in which animation of this conversation avoids some of the pitfalls of this manipulation (editing), and yet opens many other problems (visual interpretation).

There is one animated sequence that appears a few times in the film, as Gondry asks Chomsky about his late wife. The illustration accompanying conversation about their happiness is of a man and a woman riding bikes. It even makes it into the trailer.


Never in the interview does Chomsky (nor Gondry) say anything about bike rides. Why is this the image of happiness? Obviously, I agree with it -- it speaks to my own sensibilities. However, it is a fascinating metaphorical choice. Why not a stroll through a meadow, a ride in a convertible, a view from a sailboat, a snuggle on the couch (one of these things is not like the others), etc.?

What is it about bike rides that equates with happiness?

1.13.2014

Spring semester commences...

"The ultimate significance of lake, river, mountain and plain is not physical but social; it is the part which it plays in modifying and directing human relationships." -John Dewey, 1909.